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Home » Pork Carnitas with Roasted Pineapple Habanero Sauce

Pork Carnitas with Roasted Pineapple Habanero Sauce

June 4, 2017 by Carlos Leo | 20 Comments

Pineapple Habanero Pork Carnitas is a delicious spin on the traditional carnitas recipe (Mexican Slow Cooker Pulled Pork). The pork is braised on the stove in Roasted Pineapple Habanero Sauce, garlic, and cumin until it’s tender and then pulled apart. For this recipe, I use the pork carnitas in tacos with a lot of tasty toppings.

Pork Carnitas slowly braised on the stove in Roasted Pineapple Habanero Sauce until tender. Fill your tacos or burritos. Available at Spoonabilities.com

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First, we start with a beautiful piece of pork with a lot of marbling. I chose a Boston Butt cut, but you can use pork shoulder too.  Cut it in 2-inch pieces and rub with the juice of one sour orange or lime. In Dominican, we always clean the pork with the bitter orange and let it sit with the juice for 10 minutes to let the juices penetrate the meat. The acidity will help to eliminate any bacteria on the pork, and any strong smell of the animal. This cleaning technique is very common in the Caribbean Islands.


What’s the difference between Pork Shoulder and Boston Butt?

Boston Butt is the cut from the pork located above the shoulder blade and contains a lot of juicy marbled fat. Marbled fat is the main reason why this cut is the preferred part of the pork to slow cook or braise. When the fat melts, it adds flavor and keeps the meat moist. “Marble” is the white specks of fat within a piece of meat. Boston Butt is very inexpensive and feeds a lot of people for the money.

Pork Shoulder is the cut of meat below the Boston Butt. This cut includes most of the pork front leg section. The meat in this area is tougher than the Boston Butt because the front side of the pig works harder and creates more muscle. You will need more cooking time to get the pork shoulder to be tender.

Pork Carnitas tacos with Roasted Pineapple Habanero Sauce. Perfect Mexican themed dinner party or a taco night at home. Spoonabilities.com



For this pork carnitas recipe, I used two of my favorite ingredients: garlic and cumin. I combined them with salt and pepper, and I rubbed the pork well. Into a Dutch oven the pork goes, and then on the stove. Pour in the Roasted Pineapple Habanero Sauce and cover with chicken or vegetable stock, until the liquid barely covers the pork.

Cook the meat for about 2.5 or 3 hours at medium-low heat. I do recommend checking the pot after two hours just in case you need to add a little bit more liquid. Note: before adding more liquid, taste the pork to find out if it’s already tender.

When the liquid has evaporated completely, let the pork cook in the fat long enough until you brown each side. The key to this recipe is to let the juices evaporate and create caramelized and crusty edges.

Slow-cooked Pork Carnitas is a delicious spin on the traditional carnitas. Braised on the stove in Roasted Pineapple Habanero Sauce from Terrapin Ridge Farms. Spoonabilities.com

What’s the difference between braised pork and pork carnitas  (Mexican Slow Cooker Pulled Pork)?

When I started making this pork carnitas, I didn’t know what the difference was between braised (or slowly cooked,) and carnitas. Turns out the difference is that carnitas has the crispy and golden edges.  So whereas a braised pork you take out of the pot as soon as it’s done, this Mexican dish gives you a tender and juicy meat with crispy and golden edges.  What else can you ask for in this dish?

Also, there is not a strict or proper way to cook pork carnitas. You can make it in a slow cooker, crock pot, pressure cooker or a Dutch oven, on the stove or in the oven.  By the way, this is not the authentic pork carnitas you will eat in Mexico. This recipe has the twist of the Roasted Pineapple Habanero Sauce.

Here are also some other recipes where I use the braising method:

  • Salted Caramel Pulled Pork Slider
  • BBQ Short Ribs
  • Mediterranean Chicken Thighs



Pork Carnitas tacos with Roasted Pineapple Habanero Sauce. Perfect Mexican inspired dinner party or a taco night at home. Spoonabilities.com

What to serve with pork carnitas

Now, let’s talk about the infinite Spoonabilities (possibilities and combinations) to serve and eat with this amazingly delicious pork carnitas.

Use the pork carnitas as a filling for tacos, tamales, enchiladas, Mexican Lasagna, tortas, burritos, and wraps. Also, you can add the carnitas to this Fiesta Roasted Red Pepper Dip and serve it as a main dish, or make a pulled pork slider.

Today I served lunch with warm flour tortillas, cabbage, a few Spoonfuls of carnitas, cilantro, Roasted Pineapple Habanero Sauce, sprinkled some Mexican-blend cheese and topped with cilantro.  You can use any other taco toppings of your preference such as salsa, sour cream, guacamole, cotija cheese, pico de gallo, tomatillo salsa, black beans and red onion.  OH, and don’t forget the margaritas!

Viva Mexico!!!

Carlos

P.S. – Below is the background I setup for this photo shoot. I love it, and wanted to stick it in this post somewhere, so here it is 😉

UPDATE: This recipe is part of the 9 Mexican food recipes to celebrate Cinco de Mayo

Beautiful background with guacamole, avocados, cilantro and a refreshing margarita. Used for the Pork Carnitas Tacos photo shoot session. Spoonabilities.com

Print
Slow-cooked Pork Carnitas is a delicious spin on the traditional carnitas. Braised on the stove in Roasted Pineapple Habanero Sauce. Spoonabilities.com

Pork Carnitas with Roasted Pineapple Habanero Sauce


★★★★★

5 from 5 reviews

  • Author: Carlos Leo
  • Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • Total Time: 10 minutes
  • Yield: 8-9 servings 1x
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Description

Pork Carnitas is just the right filling for tacos, burritos, tortas and tamales. Carnitas helps you creates the perfect Mexican themed dinner party, or a fun taco night at home. Tacos are the best food ever because they are easy, fun, and delicious with infinite combination possibilities. Slowly braised on the stove in Roasted Pineapple Habanero Sauce until tender and pulled apart, this pork carnitas recipe or Mexican Slow Cooker Pulled Pork produces all the sweetness and smokiness from the pineapple, and gives the pork a punch of flavor and a kick of heat from the habanero peppers. The outside of the pork is crispy and caramelized. 


Scale

Ingredients

  • 3 lbs. boneless pork shoulder or boston butt, cut into 2-inch cubes
  • 1 bottle Roasted Pineapple Habanero Sauce Click to buy in our online shop
  • 4 cloves garlic, peeled and mashed in a paste
  • 2 teaSpoons powder cumin
  • 1–1/2 teaSpoons salt
  • 1 teaSpoon pepper
  • 1 sour orange or lime
  • 1 carton chicken stock or vegetable stock – low sodium

Toppings

  • 1 small cabbage, thinly sliced
  • 1 bunch of cilantro, chopped
  • 1 cup sour cream
  • 1 package of corn or flour tortillas, fajita size
  • salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions

  1. Cut pork butt into 2-inch cubes and wash with the juice of the sour orange or lime. Leave it for 10 minutes.
  2. Rub the pork with the mashed garlic, cumin, salt & pepper. Then, put the pork in a large Dutch oven
  3. Pour in the Roasted Pineapple Habanero Sauce and enough chicken stock to just hardly cover the meat.
  4. Bring the pot to a boil and then reduce the heat to medium-low.
  5. Simmer uncovered for about 2 1/2 – 3 hours. Don’t touch the meat.
  6. Check after two hours in case you need to add a little bit more liquid. Note: Before adding more liquid, taste the pork to find out if it’s already tender.
  7. After 2 1/2-3 hours, increase the heat to medium-high. Stir and turn meat occasionally and continue to cook until all of the water has evaporated.
  8. Let it sizzle in the fat long enough to brown at the edges. Should look crispy.
  9. When done, take out of the pot, and pull meat apart.
  10. Serve with warmed tortillas and add additional toppings.

Notes

Vitamin A 1%, Vitamin C 63%, Calcium 5%,  Iron 13%

 

  • Category: Lunch, Dinner
  • Cuisine: Mexican

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1/3 lb per person
  • Calories: 436
  • Sugar: 8.9 g
  • Sodium: 646.3 mg
  • Fat: 28.7 g
  • Saturated Fat: 9.8 g
  • Carbohydrates: 13.9 g
  • Fiber: 1.2 g
  • Protein: 29.4 g
  • Cholesterol: 110.7 mg

Did you make this recipe?

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Tags: MEAT: Recipes made with Red Meat, SAUCE: Recipes made with Sauce Categories: Dinner, Lunch, Recipes

About the Author

Carlos Leo's avatar

As an Aspiring Chef, Blogger and Photographer – my passion in life is food. I'm constantly finding and researching recipes. Constant experimenting leads me to use the best parts of each to make a unique flavorful experience. Ask about my free “Recipe Concierge Service,” where I can help you create easy and delicious recipes using leftover half-used ingredients sitting in your refrigerator or pantry. Our mission at Spoonabilities.com is “No Jars Left Behind.” Find out more About Us

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Karly says

    June 5, 2017 at 2:05 pm

    Is it Taco Tuesday yet!? This post has me more than ready to dig into allll the tacos. Love the big bold flavors here!

    Reply
    • Carlos Leo says

      June 5, 2017 at 2:20 pm

      Almost Tuesday Karly !! I have been the same way since I started to work on this post and to look at those pictures, remind me how good that Carnitas taste!
      Every time that I see those pictures I get my mouth watering

      Reply
  2. Melissa Novotny says

    June 6, 2017 at 9:46 pm

    This recipe is perfect – we made it two ways. One, I marinated the pork butt in all the ingredients overnight and my husband cooked it low and slow on the smoker the next day. The other, I braised the meat in the crock pot just like the instructions. Both ways were AMAZING. We all can’t stop raving about it and are excited about making it again soon! Thanks for doing all the hard work for us!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Carlos Leo says

      June 6, 2017 at 10:45 pm

      Hello Melissa, Thank you so much for your wonderful feedback. You and your husband are very lucky to have all those fun tools(smokers & BBQ) that help you to create amazing dishes. Thanks for stopping by.

      Reply
  3. Supriya Kutty says

    June 9, 2017 at 7:31 am

    Great work.!!! Pineapple is my favorite fruit so i am definitely trying this recipe. Pictures are too wonderful which you have posted.

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Carlos Leo says

      June 10, 2017 at 3:09 am

      Hi Supriya, Thank you so much for your comment. We truly appreciate it. I feel delighted to hear your compliment about the pictures. Thank you, and I hope to see you again around here

      Reply
  4. Savita @ ChefDeHome says

    June 14, 2017 at 9:39 pm

    Love the flavor combination here! I don’t eat pork but can totally see myself enjoying these flavors with any meat! mouthwatering!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Geoffrey Swetz says

      June 15, 2017 at 12:24 pm

      Thanks for mentioning the flavor combos Savita. Yes, you can make this with any other meat instead. Give it a try and let us know what you come up with.

      Reply
  5. Shashi at Savory Spin says

    June 14, 2017 at 10:38 pm

    That Pineapple Habanero Sauce is EPIC – such a delightful pairing with the pork! And, today, thanks to ya – I learned the difference between pork carnitas and braised pork!

    Reply
    • Geoffrey Swetz says

      June 15, 2017 at 12:23 pm

      Thank you Shashi for your comments. The Pineapple Habanero Sauce really IS epic and versatile and delicious!! You should give it a try. Thank you also for mentioning about the difference between pork carnitas and braised pork. Carlos is trying to help our readers with information, tips and general help. Thanks again!

      Reply
  6. Catherine says

    June 14, 2017 at 10:58 pm

    What mouth-watering shots! These pork carnitas are calling my name!

    Reply
    • Geoffrey Swetz says

      June 15, 2017 at 12:20 pm

      LOL, I can hear them too.. “Catherine, come eat me!” Better hurry up and try the recipe

      Reply
  7. Luci's Morsels says

    June 15, 2017 at 12:43 am

    These look amazing and I am totally drooling over that tender pork! Yummy! Thank you for sharing! Luci’s Morsels | fashion. food. frivolity.

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Geoffrey Swetz says

      June 15, 2017 at 12:19 pm

      Thanks Luci! Try not to make a mess drooling all over the place LOL… make the recipe right away and you have some for lunch!

      Reply
  8. Natalia says

    June 15, 2017 at 3:18 am

    These pictures are amazing! Love pineapples and how you added them to this recipe! Excellent job and surely delicious.

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Geoffrey Swetz says

      June 15, 2017 at 12:18 pm

      Thank you so much Natalia for stopping by and commenting on the pictures. Carlos is taking his photography learning very seriously.

      Reply
  9. Agness of Run Agness Run says

    June 27, 2017 at 6:47 pm

    This is a perfect party idea! I will definitely give these carnitas a try, Geoffrey!

    Reply
    • Carlos Leo says

      June 29, 2017 at 9:54 pm

      Great Agness! Let us know when you try them. Send us a picture!!!

      Reply
  10. Daniela says

    July 28, 2017 at 1:34 pm

    I’m obsessed with carnitas, and this recipe sounds so easy to make. I love to top mine with a little bit of minced onion and cilantro, but I’m going to have to give your habanero sauce a try. I love putting sweet and spicy together, so it sounds perfect for me.

    Reply
    • Carlos Leo says

      July 29, 2017 at 12:18 am

      I’ve Obsessed too Daniela. I like mine with minced onion and Cilantro too, but Geoffrey prefers without them. I have to try the habanero sauce, and I’m curious to find out what you will be able to create with this sauce.

      Reply

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